Consulting the Mirror of FERUS TEL
Lila notices she’s been feeling troubled for a few days now. She has friends she could talk to but, at this point, she’s not even sure what’s got her down in the first place.
She begins by separating out the 9 red bordered FERUS (the Escalators) depicting a range of problematic emotions.
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Escalator Moods seldom resonate well with other Moods. Instead they teach us specific kinds of Defense Mechanisms. Defense Mechanisms arise to allow incompatible Moods to coexist. In FERUS TEL, the nine Escalators depict how it may feel to be practicing the following defenses:
Python - Denial
Stoat - Reaction Formation
Hare - Introjection
Toad - Displacement
Manatee - Withdrawal
Thrush - Rationalization
Jelly Fish - Repression
Condor - Projection
Shrew - Regression
Right away, she is drawn to the Shrew and the Jelly Fish. Their representation of Repression and Regression seem to convey in simple imagery the nature of her crummy feelings.
She then flips them over and sees that they have two TELs in common.
Consulting the spectrum of TELs in her guidebook, she reads that the waterfall indicates Disgraced (as a reaction to Shame) and the dark rock indicates Exasperation (as a rejection of Rage).
The Spectrum of TELs
Lila is intrigued by the idea that there may be some rejected rage at play within her feelings. So she selects out all the FERUS in the mood deck with TELs of dark rock (Exasperation) to see what those moods might reveal to her. She finds seven FERA that have the dark rock Tel on the back.
The white bordered FERUS (called Resonators) are the ones that provide avenues to process feelings. Lila considers the deck’s Octopus, Lemur, and Egret as potential paths forward.
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Resonating Moods are highly interactive with other moods. They often serve a mediating role between other unstable moods.
In FERUS TEL we learn to process feelings by finding ways to link one FERA to another via matching TELs.
In our lives, this is how we help our moods flow in congruence with each other.
Though not a big lover of Octopi , Lila finds herself empathizing with the creature for its creative but contained spirit in dealing with its pent up frustrations.
Looking closer at the front and back of the Octopus, she notices how the Tel of Shame is no longer reactive as it was with Shrew and Jelly Fish but is in the wavelength of accepting. Instead of the waterfall, she sees the Octopus contains a blue river TEL indicating Sensitivity.
Lila takes a second look at the Octopus’s tentacles and finds them strangely appealing in their sensitive tracing of the sea. Something softens for Lila as she imagines taking a more sensitive approach to her exasperating life and she remembers a cool project she shelved some time ago.
Feeling encouraged by a new “Octopus- like” fascination for the project she’s been neglecting, Lila pulls out the full deck again and takes a final look at all the FERUS that contain the TEL of sensitivity. She finds eight of them.
The black bordered FERUS (called Insulators) are the ones that evoke a Call To Action. Lila selects the Bat because it reminds her of her best friend Melissa who shares her fascination with her project.
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The Insulators command the best of the human spirit within us.
In FERUS TEL, each rules over their own territory. For good or ill, they set the highest expectations for what is attainable. They depict the following overarching values:
Elephant - Heroism
Beaver - Altruism
Wolf - Magic
Fawn - Artistry
Dolphin - Intelligence
Bear - Belonging
Otter - Play
Bat - Love
Snow Leopard - Purpose
Satisfied with the mosaic snapshot of this FERUS family revealed now before her, she arranges the Shrew, Jelly Fish, Octopus, and Bat on her coffee table. Friends for the day, they sit there as signatures of her fleeting insights - awaiting what further messages she may read into them as the day progresses.
